Cell phones on school grounds is becoming a highly debated topic lately. More and more schools are adopting the policy of prohibiting students from bringing cell phones to school. The immediate question that comes to mind is, can schools legally ban their students from bringing a cell phone to school?
The best way to answer this question is to look at both sides of this debate. Those in favor of students having cell phones, meaning the parents of these students, (sorry boys and girls, but a teenager's claim to why they might need a cell phone in school holds no weight in this conversation) have a few logical reasons as to why their child should possess a cell phone in school. It basically boils down to parents challenging schools banning cell phones on the basis that it interferes with their constitutional right to guide the care, custody and control of their children. I'm not necessarily buying that argument, but it is not totally without merit.
The school's argument for banning cell phones is based on specific instances that take place on a daily basis as a result of allowing students to have cell phones in school. These incidents include but are not limited to harassment, intimidation and cheating. So, the question remains, who has the last say when it comes to cell phones in school.
Ultimately it comes down to the school district's policy, meaning the school can set policy denying students the right to bring cellphones to school. Se Price v New York City Board of Education, 51 A.D. 3d 277 (2008) The court said the ban was within the districts authority to create regulations governing discipline and was not subject to judicial intervention.
Why not a compromise then? Let students bring their cell phones to school and keep them in their lockers turned off. Most schools have a policy similar to this, but let's be honest. If a teenager is bringing their cell phone to school, do you really think they're going to turn it off and put it in their locker. Cell phones are so small and compact that they can be hidden anywhere. It's just too much of a temptation for teens to carry it on their person because they don't think they're going to get caught. Now when teens surreptitiously use their phones in school, teachers have to take time to discipline the student for violating school rules. This takes time away from classroom instruction, which in and of itself gives the school more of a reason to ban cell phones from being brought to school.
There are still parents out there that are going to argue that this ban will take away their fundamental right to child rearing. If we compare this banning of cell phones to another case we will see this is not necessarily the case. The courts have upheld that schools can not distribute condoms. The reason being it interferes with the parents' right to guide the sexual activity of their children. When comparing the cases you see that not allowing a child to have a cell phone in school has very little interference on child rearing.
The school ultimately falls back on its safety net, which is the legitimate goal of keeping discipline and order in school, and overcoming any hindrance to the furtherance of education.
Sorry teens, if the school says no phones the law is on their side.
